E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Crush.
To crush a bottle—i.e. drink one. Cf. Milton’s crush the sweet poison. The idea is that of crushing the grapes. Shakespeare has also burst a bottle in the same sense (Induction of Taming the Shrew). (See CRACK.)
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“Come and crush a cup of wine.”
Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet, i. 2.
To crush a fly on a wheel. To crack a nut with a steam-hammer; to employ power far too valuable for the purpose to be accomplished. The wheel referred to is the rack. (See BREAK A BUTTERFLY.)
